A day before Christmas, Della is at the rented room where he lives with her husband Jim worried about only having 1.87 dollars to buy him a gift. They only have two precious possessions: Jim's gold watch and Della's hair. In an outburst of love and generosity, Della decides to cut and sell her hair in order to buy Jim a gold chain for his watch. When he arrives home, Jim also has a present for her: a beautiful set of combs which he has been able to buy after selling his watch.